by Mary Loden
maryloden@clreporter.com
The City of Ventura has found itself in a virtual tug-of-war with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). The Ventura City Council has been working for over two years to plan a bike trail from McIntosh State Park to the Venetian Harbor, apply for permits and raise the funds. Now, with preliminary work planned to begin soon, the City Council received a reply from the IDNR which rejected the proposed plan.
The issue with the state began with the City of Ventura applying for their last permit in January 2023 – a Sovereign Lands permit – which grants permission, “for any construction on, above, or under state-owned lands or waters …in advance of work.”
Ventura Mayor Joe Schmit is beyond frustrated with the situation. “We have literally been working on this trail and permits for almost two years now, and we had to apply for this sovereign land permit last January and they are just now getting back to us,” he said. “So, we are going to lose our funding here if we don’t get going. Well over half the money is coming from different grants and funds to help build this trail. They [IDNR] have been dragging their feet forever. It’s ridiculous.”
Both the City of Ventura and the State of Iowa own a portion of the property where the proposed bike trail will be located. “That’s why in some areas we need permission from the DNR to create the trail,” Schmit said.
The portion of road in question encompasses the area Clear Lakers have come to know as “Dead Man’s Curve” because of a dangerous, blind curve in the road. “That’s part of the reason why we’re doing this, because there are so many bikers and walkers that want to enjoy the lake, but that is a stretch of road that is not a safe place to travel,” Schmit said.
The response from Casey Laskowski, M.S., IDNR Environmental Specialist, stated that the state purchased the tract of land using funds from the United States Fish & Wildlife Service’s Sport Fish Restoration Program, which requires the state to maintain the land for the primary purpose of providing public access for sport fishing, along with providing a buffer to protect the sport fish habitat. Laskowski further stated that using the land for “other non-supported uses can be considered a diversion of these funds and put the State at risk of losing Federal funding.”
He pointed out that the existing road right-of-way is heavily used by anglers accessing Clear Lake via the open-to-the-public Venice Dock and the DNR has an obligation to keep public parking available along the road almost year round.
“If the trail is constructed as proposed in the plans submitted, offset from the road edge, anglers will no longer be able to park along this section and the bike trail would be interfering with the purpose of the property,” Laskowski wrote. “Additionally, the plans show areas where the proposed trail alignment come extremely close to the OHWL (ordinary high water level) of Clear Lake. It will be extremely difficult to stabilize the bank to protect from erosion coming off of the bike trails.”
Laskowski said he supports the bike trail, but it would need to be constructed as “on street with bike lane” as used in other parts of the community to ensure it meets the requirements placed on the property,
The response left Schmit wondering if their plans were even reviewed at all. The city proposes a 10-foot buffer and then an additional 10-foot wide path along the south side of the road for walking or biking. The buffer strip would actually increase the parking and accessibility along that side of the road. “It gives more access to parking in the long run, especially in the winter time when that is heavily used there,” Schmit said.
“I ice fish all the time. I am very familiar with that section and how it is,” said Schmit, who has owned property in Ventura since 2006 and claims he drives that section of road at least four times a day, especially in winter. “We are going to clear out all the trees. They will all be gone and then we’ll do shoreline restoration. It will create a beautiful view of the lake from the trail. It will be one of the only places where you can actually walk or ride a bike next to the lake and it will be 10 times safer.”
Schmit said he believes the issue stems from the state department not really understanding the area. “No one has been here to meet with any city officials. All they have done is back and forth with emails,” Schmit said.
That is why he has written letters to state legislators, such as State Rep. Jane Bloomingdale and Senator Waylon Brown. He has even re-contacted Todd Coffelt, Bureau Chief State Park, Forests and Preserves Bureau of the IDNR, who was originally in favor of the bike trail plan. “We just want to get the Des Moines DNR, or whoever handles this kind of thing, to come up here and get hands on so we are all on the same page,” Schmit said. “This should not be an issue.”
